Article 22

Jacksonville Police and Fire Pension Board of Trustees

Section 22.01.

Creation

There is hereby created and established a body politic and corporate to be known as the Jacksonville Police and Fire Pension board of Trustees, which is hereby authorized to exercise its jurisdiction, powers, and duties within the territorial limits of Duval County.

Section 22.02.

Membership

The membership of the Jacksonville Police and Fire Pension Board of Trustees shall

consist of five members, of whom two shall be legal residents of the City of Jacksonville appointed by the City Council, one shall be a police officer elected by a majority of the police officers who are members of the pension fund, one shall be a firefighter elected by a majority of the firefighters who are members of the pension fund, and the last shall be chosen by a majority of the previous four members. The fifth member's name shall be submitted to the City Council, which shall, as a ministerial act, appoint such person as the fifth member of the Board. Each resident member shall serve as a trustee for a period of 2 years, unless sooner replaced by the City Council at whose pleasure he shall serve, and may succeed himself as a trustee. The police officer and firefighter members shall serve as trustees for a period of 2 years, unless they shall sooner leave the employment of the City as a police officer or firefighter, whereupon the class of employees whose elected representative has left office shall elect a successor as provided for in this section. Each employee member may succeed himself in office. The fifth member shall serve a term of 2 years and may succeed himself in office. Members shall continue to serve until their respective successors are appointed.

The Board shall elect a chairman and a secretary. The secretary of the Board shall

keep a complete minute book of the actions, proceedings, and hearings of the Board. Board members shall not receive any compensation as such, but may receive expenses and per diem as provided by law. Three members of the Board shall constitute a quorum, but as least three members of the Board must approve any action to be taken by the Board. Each member o9f the Board shall have one vote. The Board shall meet at such times and places designated by it, but shall hold regular meetings at least quarterly. Special meetings may be called by the chairman or any three members of the Board.

The treasurer of the City shall be the treasurer of the Fund.

The provisions of Chapters 175 and 185, Florida Statutes, the provisions of s.286.012, Florida Statutes, and the provisions of ss. 112.311-112.3175 and ss. 112.60-112.66, Florida Statutes, inclusive, and as the same may be amended in the future, shall apply to each member of the Board.

Section 22.03.

Definitions

As used in this article, the following words and terms shall have the following meanings, unless the context otherwise requires:

"Board" or "Board of Trustees" means the body politic and corporate created by this article.

"County" means the County of Duval.

"City" means the City of Jacksonville.

"Pension Plan" or "Pension Fund" refers to the Jacksonville Police and Fire Pension

Fund as created by Chapter 18615, Laws of Florida, 1937.

(e) The "Council" means the Council of the City of Jacksonville.

(f) Words importing the singular number include the plural number in each case and vice versa, and words importing persons include firms and corporations. Words indicating the masculine mean both the masculine and feminine.

Section 22.04.

General Powers

The Board shall have the power to:

(a) Be the sole entity responsible for administering the Jacksonville Police and Fire Pension Fund.

(b) Invest and reinvest the assets of the pension fund in:

(1) Time or savings accounts of a national bank, a state bank insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, or a savings and loan association insured by the Federal Savings and Loan Insurance Corporation.

(2) Obligations of the United States or obligations guaranteed as to principle and interest by the United States.

(3) Bonds issued by the State of Israel.

(4) Bonds, stocks or other evidences of indebtedness issued or guaranteed by a corporation organized under the laws of the United States, any state or organized territory of the United States, or the District of Columbia, provided the corporation is listed on any one or more of the national stock exchanges and holds a rating in one of the three highest classifications by a major rating service; and the Board of Trustees shall not invest more than 5 percent of its assets in the common stock or capital stock of any one issuing company, nor shall the aggregate investment in any one issuing company exceed 5 percent of the outstanding capital stock of the company, nor shall the aggregate of its investments under this paragraph exceed 50 percent of the Fund's assets in common stocks.

(5) At not time shall the investment in real estate and real estate related securities exceed 10 percent of the book value of any fund. Such investment must be recommended by either a competent nationally recognized investment counseling firm or a corporate trustee who is nationally recognized in pension fund investments.

(d) Enter into contracts, leases, or other transactions.

(e) Employ and fix the compensation of an administrator and any consultants, attorneys, actuaries, accountants, and other employees or contractors as the Board may require.

(f) Delegate to one or more of its agents or employees such of its powers as it may deem necessary to carry out the purposes of this article, subject always to the supervision and control of the Board.

(g) Determine all facts with regard to any participant's age, normal retirement date, disability, amount of compensation, length of service and credited service, and date of initial coverage under the pension plan, and, by application of the facts so determined and any other facts deemed material, determine a participant's amount of benefit.

(h) Make rules and regulations for the administration of the pension plan which are not

inconsistent with the terms and provisions of law.

(i) Construe all terms, provisions, conditions, and limitations of the pension plan; and its construction thereof, made in good faith, shall be final and conclusive upon the interested parties.

(j) Correct any defect or supply any omission or reconcile any inconsistency that may appear in the pension fund and make any equitable adjustments for any mistakes or errors made in the administration of the pension.

(k) Determine all questions relating to the administration of the pension fund in order to promote the uniform administration of the pension fund and to effectuate its purposes and provisions.

(l) Authorize and direct the payment from the pension fund of all expenses and fees incurred in the administration of the pension fund.

(m) Require such information as may be necessary for the proper operation of the system from any participant, beneficiary, or officer, department head, or other person or persons in authority, as the case may be, of any employer.

(n) Cause a general investigation to be made by a competent actuary and at least once every 3 years or as required by law thereafter of the retirement, disability, separation, mortality, interest, and employee earning rates; recommend, as a result of such investigation, the tables to be adopted for all required actuarial calculations; cause an annual determination to be made by a competent actuarial of the liabilities and reserves of the pension plan and the annual determination of the amount of the contributions required by the City; and maintain the funds of the pension plan on a sound actuarial basis. A copy of this actuarial study shall be furnished to the City Council by the Board immediately upon its receipt.

(o) Cause an audit of the affairs of the pension plan to be made annually by an independent certified public accountant, and submit a copy thereof to all interested parties as soon as possible after the end of the fiscal year.

The foregoing list of expressed powers is not intended to be either complete or exclusive, and the Board shall, in addition, have all such powers as it may reasonably determine to be necessary or appropriate to the performance of its duties under the retirement system. Any decision or judgment of the Board in good faith on any questions arising hereunder in connection with the exercise of its powers shall be final, binding, and conclusive upon all parties concerned.

Section 22.05.

Liability of the Board

(a) Each member of the Board shall discharge his duties solely in the interest of the

participants and beneficiaries of the Jacksonville Police and Fire Pension Fund for the exclusive purpose of providing benefits to participants and their beneficiaries and defraying reasonable expenses of administering the plan and shall exercise such care and diligence as is necessary to accomplish this purpose according to the provisions of s. 112.656, Florida Statutes.

(b) No Board member shall be personally liable upon or with respect to any agreement, act, transaction, or omission executed, committed, or suffered to be committed by himself as a member of the Board or by any other Board member or agent, representative, or employee of the Board. Moreover, the Board and any member or agent thereof shall be fully protected when relying upon the advice of any attorney employed the Board insofar as legal matters are concerned, any accountant employed by the Board insofar as accounting matters are concerned, any actuary employed by the Board insofar as actuarial matters are concerned, and any investment manager employed by the Board insofar as investment matters are concerned.

(c) The Board shall have the power to purchase liability insurance to cover errors and omissions, provided such insurance shall be with recourse.

(d) The Board may, in its discretion, provide life and/or accidental death and disability insurance to the trustees and employees of the Board to ensure against risks incurred while in the service of the pension fund.

Section 22.06.

Named fiduciaries

The named fiduciaries with respect to the City of Jacksonville Police and Fire Pension Fund are the plan administrator, and any officer, trustee, and custodian, and any counsel, accountant, and actuary of the retirement system or plan who is employed on a full time basis, or any other person or entity who is a fiduciary according to law shall be included as fiduciaries of such system or plan.

Section 22.07.

Amendatory power

(a) The Board of Trustees shall have the sole and exclusive responsibility of administering the pension plan, but nothing herein shall empower the Board to amend the provisions of the pension plan without the approval of the Jacksonville City Council.

(b) No legislation shall be adopted by the Jacksonville City Council altering the terms of the pension fund without said legislation having first been referred to the Board for its consideration and comment. The Board may, as it deems necessary, recommend legislative changes and pass those recommendations on to the Jacksonville City Council for their consideration as ordinances.

(c) The benefit plan administered by the Board shall be as established by ordinance or charter provision, or by special act or general law of the Legislature, which shall be incorporated in this article by reference.

Section 22.08.

Applicability of state law

The Board shall be bound in its actions by the provisions of:

(a) Chapter 185, Florida Statutes, as amended.

(b) Chapter 175, Florida Statutes, as amended.

Section 22.09.

Rights of former city employees preserved

(a) Any person in the classified civil service of the City of Jacksonville who is appointed to a position in the employ of the Board shall be deemed an unclassified employee while in the service of the Board and shall serve at the pleasure of the Board.

(b) Any such person shall, however, retain his civil service status and be entitled to return to the same civil service classification, rights, status, and job value as held at the time of such appointment.

Section 22.10.

Declaration of purposes

The Board created by this article and the purposes for which it is intended to serve are hereby found to be for a public purpose. The Board shall be considered a governmental unit responsible for the management of an irrevocable trust as that term is used in s. 112.66(8), Florida Statutes.

Section 22.11.

Jacksonville Police and Fire Pension Board continuity

All provisions of law in conflict with this article are repealed, except to the extent necessary to give effect to employee rights and benefits preserved as provided in this article. The Jacksonville Police and Fire Pension Board shall continue as an independent agency under the Charter of the City of Jacksonville, without any break in its continuity solely because of the adoption of this article. The members of the Board in office on the effective date of this article shall continue in office for the remainder of their respective terms and until their successors shall be appointed as provided in this article.